Page 357 of Evil Hearts

“Shower?” I asked myself, again remembering more odd circumstances, this of my previous trip to the bathroom. “Mmm, nope. Coffee.”

I stood shakily, my body lethargic and slow to respond. It was unsurprising. I knew better than to pinch my nerves like that by sleeping outside my bed. Ehlers Danlos was especially unhappy with me this morning, and I was just glad that I hadn’t dislocated anything or paralyzed my arm.

Finally reaching the much-needed caffeine, I pulled down a mug from the lowest cupboard above my counter, thankful yet again that I’d arranged my house in as ED-friendly a way as possible.

The brew of choice today was maple cinnamon, and I sighed as the fragrant aroma filled the air. My coffee pod machine was getting old, and I really needed to replace it, but that would be a problem for future Aki.

The coffee helped and gave me something to swallow down my pills with, though I managed to burn my tongue in the process. I went back to the couch, despite knowing that I should’ve changed out of yesterday’s clothes, and pulled up Netflix.Choosing “The Good Place” for this morning’s TV binge, I settled into the cushions.

“Ugh, what am I supposed to do today?”

I tried to remember the to-dos I had planned, but my memory was foggy and sluggish. Returning to the lab tomorrow sounded about as fun as getting tested for my diagnosis those years back, which was out of character. I loved my job, and I was damn good at it.

Renard was the cause of that dread, though. He was always a cranky bitch when anyone came back from a “vacation.”

I took a four-day weekend for my b-day, buddy. Chill.

Still, the work was important. I was helping people. I mean, sure, not right this minute, but the research was going to change things for the better, even if it could be fucking dull sometimes.

My phone buzzed, alerting me to the new post from one of my favorite social accounts, and I pulled up the hilarious story of the “real life” cryptid he’d seen in the woods last night. I chuckled to myself, tossing the thing back on the couch as I imagined him running into a BigFoot in the two-block area of the city that actually contained trees. Yeah, I had a problem, a little obsession with cryptids, but come on, it was harmless.

“Ahh, to be scooped up by the Jersey Devil or something.”

I’d be lying if I said I didn’t often wonder what it would be like to see arealmonster, even if I knew it was utterly absurd. But, if my video games and fantasy books were anything to go by, I either needed to shoot it on sight or try to bang it, which were quite opposing options if I were suddenly in that position.

“Good thing they’re not real.”

At that, the electricity in my apartment cut out, and everything went black.

“Fuck.” I grumbled.

“You have no idea.”

Chapter Four

Runethok

Darkness was easier.It was where I belonged, and from it, I could hunt, take, and taste.

The blinding light of morning was cut abruptly from the room as I cloaked the space in an impenetrable layer of shadow. Willing the blinds closed while Akirako fiddled with that damned electronic device, and sealing the apartment against visitors had been a simple thing, not like changing her memories.

Akirako still fought against the haze I smoothed over her mind, her curiosity chipping away at the barrier like age against the paint. The walls were crumbling, and the truth would all too soon come spilling out from behind the block. It was better this way.

At least, that’s what I told myself.

“Is something there?! Fuck off?!”

My little scientist swung wildly in the blackness, trying to land sloppy blows on the perceived threat. Sightless in the dark, she stumbled against her coffee table as she tried to navigate to her kitchen.

I had to hand it to her. Although Akirako knew the layout of her apartment quite well, the oppressive black I sent through the space was not like night. There was no faint moonlight or theblinking of glowing electric numbers scattered throughout her home to guide her.

There was only black—endless and mine.

I could feel her hands swatting through the shadows as I watched her panic in the dark. If only she knew that she’d seen me nearly every day in her apartment and beyond. Peering into shadows, venturing into dark alleyways and corners, I’d seen her, been with her in all of them.

Baltzeheir spoke in my mind as I watched. “Get on with it, Rune. Get her here, or I’ll do it myself.”

Shunting him out and locking the door of my mind behind him, I returned my focus to Akirako.

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